Expanding California’s Vital Transportation Infrastructure

California’s transportation corridors serve 38 million residents, 32 million of which drive 324 billion miles annually throughout the state. Not only do commuters access and use the state’s roads, bridges and highways, these corridors also move billions of dollars worth of goods annually – supporting more than 5 million jobs. Investing in and maintaining our transportation corridors is essential to the state’s domestic and international commerce and the success of California’s economy.

It is California’s engineers that have designed the state’s roads, bridges, and highways to connect residents and ensure the success of industry commerce throughout the state.

To deliver these projects to the public efficiently and successfully, ACEC California’s members know that specific public policies that fund, maintain and expand are good for the taxpayer, good for business, and good for the state.

That is why ACEC California is supports a comprehensive statewide transportation funding package that will:

Make a significant investment in transportation infrastructure and create a dedicated annual revenue stream.

Focus on maintaining and revitalizing California’s current transportation infrastructure by fixing unsafe bridges, construction of auxiliary lanes, replacing storm water culverts, among other efforts.

Raise revenues across a broad range of options, including: reasonable increases in gasoline and diesel taxes; an increase in vehicle registration and license fees; dedicating a portion of cap and trade revenue to transportation projects; exploration of scaling and implementing a road charge program.

Put strong accountability measures in place to ensure that taxpayer dollars are dedicated solely to transportation infrastructure and to implement CalTrans oversight and reforms.

Include reforms to expedite project delivery, including the increased use of design build delivery systems that encourage and maximize private sector investment.

As part of the Fix Our Roads coalition, ACEC California joins business, organized labor, local government, transportation organizations, and a bipartisan group of elected officials, to push for a legislative package that will make our transportation infrastructure strong, efficient, and cost-effective.

Adequately and Accountably Funding Transportation Infrastructure

The state’s current transportation infrastructure is woefully underfunded and its roadways are falling into disrepair. Transportation infrastructure requires dedicated, reliable revenue streams that come from a variety of sources. In the past, California has relied mainly on the gas tax and as California moves towards cleaner modes of transportation, funding streams must evolve to include some or all of the following:

Reasonable increases in gasoline and diesel taxes

Increase in vehicle registration and license fees

Dedicating a portion of cap and trade revenue to transportation projects

User charge for electric and other non-fossil fuel powered vehicles that currently do not contribute to road upkeep

Expanding Public Private Partnerships, Design-Build Policies

Expanding Public Private Partnerships (P3) and design-build policies creates flexibility for local government to work with the private sector to create jobs and deliver projects in the most efficient manner possible.

Design-build is a proven technique that works particularly well with large projects. The public agency competitively selects and then contracts with one entity for both the engineering design and the construction of a project. Design-build allows many facets of the project to be worked simultaneously, instead of sequentially.